Rail and wheel flange lubricator



Ap 3, 1934. c. A. M REE RAIL AND WHEEL FLANGE LUBRICATOR Filed Aug. 27;1931 3 Sheets-Sheet l ATTORN EY APril 1934- c. A. MCREE 1,953,423

RAIL AND WHEEL FLANGE LUBRICATOR Filed Aug. 27, 1931 a Sheets-Sheet 2 iaa 2a '26 '26 I 29 I WITNESS 27 .14. M Kee ATTORNEY RAIL AND WHEELFLANGE LUBRICATOR Filed Aug. 27, 1931 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Jak MMVZZATTORNEY Patented Apr. 3, 1934 UNETE ATE-NT oFFicE.

Claims.

My invention relates to automatic lubricating devices for the rails of arailway track and the flanges of the wheels of the rolling stock passingthereover.

It is an object of theinvention to provide a device of this characterwhich may be readily installed in operative position at any desiredpoint along the track without the use of special tools and withoutaltering the track structure in any way.

Another object of the invention is to provide a lubricator which willproject the lubricant to the point of frictional contact of the wheelflanges with the rail head and which will simultaneously apply thelubricant to both the flange and rail.

.A further object of the invention is to provide means operable by thepassage of the thread of the wheels thereover for automatically andpositively forcing the lubricant to the desired point.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a device of thischaracter with a. lubricant chamber and in connection therewith toprovide a lubricant reservoir with means for maintaining the chambersupplied with lubricant and to connect a plurality of spaced lubricatorunits to one reservoir to be simultaneously supplied with lubricanttherefrom.

Qther objects and advantages of the invention will become apparentduring the course of the following detailed description when read inconjunction with the accompanying drawings which form a part of thisspecification and in which,

{ Figure 1 is a cross section of a railway track with my improvedlubricator applied to one of the rails thereof;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged view of the lubricant ap plicator shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation thereof;

Fig. l is a top plan view thereof;

Fig. 5 is a vertical sectional View taken on the line 55 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a horizontal sectional view taken on the line 6-6 of Fig. 5;

Fig. '7 is a side elevation of the applicator taken from the gauge sideof the rail;

Fig. 8 is a side elevation partly in section of the oil reservoir;

ings wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout the same, andwherein apreferred embodiment of the invention has been shown by Way ofexample, indicates one of the rails of a conventional railroad track 16and 17 indicates a portion of one of the wheels of the rolling stockpassing over said track.

The lubricant applicator unit 18 is mounted at one side of the rail 15opposite the gauge side thereof and in practice there may be any numberof the applicator units 18, spaced from each other around a curve in thetrack as may be deemed necessary to effect proper lubrication of thewheels and track. An oil reservoir 19, situated at one side of the trackis connected to each of the applicator units 18 whereby to keep themsupplied with a sufficient quantity of lubricant at all times.

The applicator units 18 are supported by means of a bracket 20 which isclamped to the rail 15. The bracket 20 comprises a pair of opposedclamping members 21 and 22 which have their opposed faces formed to fitthe flange and web portions 23 and 24, respectively; of the rail 15. Thec1amping member 22 is formed witha pair of spaced horizontal lugs 25which engage under the flange 23 of the rail 15 and the clamping section21 is also formed with a horizontal portion 26 which engages under theflange 23. The flange engaging portion 26 of the clamping member 21 isformed with a forwardly extending projecting portion 27 centrallythereof which extends between the lugs 25 on the clamping member 22thereby insuring that the clamping members will be correctly allnedwhen'assembled on the rail. A pair of tie bolts 28 extending through thelugs 25 and the flange engaging portion 26' serve to tie the clampingmembers 21 and 22 together and to bind them fast upon the rail 15.

The clamping member 22 is formed with a horizontal step or seat portion29 for the reception of a lubricant chest or chamber 30, the bottom ofwhich is formed with a lateral flange 31 which is secured by means ofbolts 3 to the lateral flange 33 formed with the step portion 2a of theclamping member 22. The upper edges of the side walls of the chest 18are formed with a flange 34. to

which the cover plate or top 35.of the chest is fastened by means of thebolts 36.

A pump cylinder 37 is mounted within the lubricant chamber 30 betweenthe cover plate and the bottom wall 38 thereof, the end of said cylinderbeing received within openings 39 and 40 in the cover plate and bottomwall respectively; The cylinder 37 is provided with an annular shoulder41 adjacent each end thereof, the

shoulders 41 bearing against the inner faces of the cover plate andbottom wall 38, respectively. A double acting piston 42 is mounted forreciprocation within the bore 43 of the cylinder 37, the piston 42 beingmounted upon the lower end of the piston rod 44 which extends verticallythrough a cylinder head 45 which is threaded into the upper end of thebore 43 of the cylinder 37. The cylinder head 45 is provided withannular flange 46 which engages the upper face of the closure plate 35around the opening 39 and serves to clamp said plate between thecylinder head and the flange 41.

An outlet fitting 47 is threadedly' engaged with in the lower end of thebore 43 of the cylinder 37 and is provided with an annular flange 48 forcooperation with the flange 41 on the. lower end of the cylinder inclamping the bottom38 therebetween. The fitting 47 is provided with alubri= cant passage 49 in communication with the interior of thecylinder 37, said passage beingnormally closed by means of aball valve50 which is normally urged to its seat 51 by means of a spring 52. Asuitable semi-flexible conduit or pipe 53 connected at one end to theoutlet fitting 47 serves to convey the lubricant discharged from thepump to the nozzle 54 from which the lubri cant is discharged on to thewheel flange 55 and the side 56 of the rail 15.

The pump piston 42 is normally urged to its uppermost position by meansof a coil spring 57 interposed between said piston and the fitting 47.Suitable inlet ports 58 are formed in the side walls of the cylinder 4'7for the passage of lubricant fronrthe chamber 30 into the bore 43 of thecylinder37 upon the up-stroke of the piston 42, suitable ball checkvalves 59 being provided in said inlet ports to prevent the return ofthe lubricant back into the chamber 30 upon the down stroke of thepiston.

Operation of the piston 42 and piston rod 44 is effected through themedium of a plunger 60 which is mounted for vertical reciprocationwithin the bore 61 of a suitable housing 62 which is mounted upon thecover plate 35 over the/cylinder head 45 and is secured in place bymeans of bolts 63. I The upper end of the plunger 60 is provided with acontact shoe 64 normally protrudingabove the. level of the rail 15 andadapted for engagement by the tread. portion of the wheel 17 to effectdownward movement of the plunger 60, pistonv rod 44 and piston 42.. toforce a charge of oil from the cylinder 37 through the conduit 53 andnozzle 54 to lubricate the flange of said wheel and the side of. therail head.

The lower end of. the plunger 60 is formed with a socket 65 for thereception of a head 66 carried by the upper end. of the piston rod 44and an expansible coil spring 67 surrounding said rod 44 between thehead 66 thereof and. the cylinder head 45 serves to normally urgeandmaintain the plunger 60, piston rod: 44 and piston 42 in theiruppermost positions, this action also being aided by thecoexp'ansiblecoilspring'57 below. the piston 42. 1

Adjustment of the stroke of, the piston 42'and thus the volume'oflubricant discharged by the passage of 'eachwheel of the rolling stockover the contact shoe 64 is provided through the medium of an adjustablestop 68 disposed in averti'cal slot 69'formed inthe' side of the plunger60, up-

ward movement of the plunger" GOYb'elng limited by contact ofitli'ebottom. of. the. slot 69 with the stop 68; This stop 68 takes theform ofa detent or pin protruding from one side of the end of the rotatableplug 70 which is mounted for rotation about a horizontal axis in thewall of the housing 62. The opposite end of the plug 70 is reduced indiameter as at '71 and is received within a socket 72 in a boss 73 of arotatable adjusting plate 74, said reduced end being secured within saidboss for rotation with said plate through the medium of a pin 75. Theadjusting pin 75 is rotatably mounted by having the boss 73 thereoffitted within the enlarged outer end of the bore 76 within which thehorizontal plug 70 is rotated. It will be readily seen that rotation ofthe plate 74 will result in raising or lowering of the eccentricallymounted etop 68 thereby effecting an adjustment of the stroke of thepiston 42 in the manner above described. The adjusting plate 74 maybelocked in any position of adjustment by reason of a pair of lockingscrews 77 which extend through spaced holes 78 in said adjusting plateand screw into alined openings in the housing to lock the plate to saidhousing.

In order to prevent undue lateral strain and wear upon the plunger 60when the tread of the wheel 17 strikes the contact shoe 64, said shoe isprovided with spaced depending lugs 79 which extend downwardly atopposite sides of the housing 62, the opposed faces of said lugs beingprovided with tongues 80 which fit in vertically alined grooves 81formed with the housing 62 thereby forming a guide for the shoe 64 andpreventing the strain upon the plunger 60.

It will be seen from an inspection of Figs. 3, 5 and 7 that the stepportion 29 of the clamping member 22 is cut away as at 82 to accommodatethe fitting 47 and the lubricant delivery pipe 53, which pipe, as beforestated. has its receiving end secured to the fitting 47 in communicationwith the lubricant passage 49 thereof. The lubricant pipe 53 leads fromthe fitting 47 downwardly between the lugs 25 and the clamping plate 22and then under the rail 15 and through a channel 83 formed with theclamping member 21, the flange engaging portion 26 and the projection 27thereof, the channel 83 extending transversely of the rail 15. When thepipe 53 reaches the side of the rail 15 opposite its receiving end, itis bent back upon itself as at 34 to overlie that portion of the flange23 which is engaged by the clamping member 21, the terminal portion 85of said pipe 58 being bent upwardly between the furcations 86 of thebifurcated portion of the clamping member 21 which engages the webportion 24 of the rail 15. The nozzle 54 is threadedly secured on theupturned end 85 of the pipe 53 and said nozzle and pipe are rigidly heldin theproper position by means of brace plates 87 and 88 respectivelywhich extend between the furcations 86 and are secured thereto by meansof screws 89.

In operation, the lubricant chamber 30 being mounted upon the outside ofthe rail 15, the shoe 54 will be contacted by the tread portion of thewheel 17 of the. rolling stock passing thereover and the piston 32 willbe depressed through the medium of the plunger 60 and piston rod. 44 toforce a charge of lubricant past the ball valve 50 and through thelubricant pipe 53 and thence out of the nozzle 54 to be dischargedat thepoint of frictional contact between the flange 55 and the side of therail head 56 on the gauge side of a the rail. The ball valve 50 servesthe dual purpose of preventing the piston 32 from drawing the lubricantback through the pipe 53 upon the upstroke thereof and also preventsanyunintended flow of lubricant from the reservoir 30 through said pipe53 when there are no cars passing over the track 16. When it is desiredto regulate the amount of lubricant to be forced from the nozzle 54 uponthe passage of each wheel over the applicator the locking screws '77 areremoved from the adjusting plate '74 and said plate is turned in adirection to either raise or lower the eccentrically mounted detent 68so as to restrict the upward movement of the plunger 60 and thus thepiston 42.

As the size of the lubricant chambers 30 are necessarily restricted dueto the placement of the applicator units directly upon the rail 15, Ihave provided a lubricant reservoir for automatically maintaining thechambers 30 full of lubricant without requiring constant attention of atrack attendant. A single large lubricant reservoir 19 is preferablysunk in the ground to one side of the track 16 intermediate of a row ofapplicator units, said reservoir communicating with a main distributorpipe 89 from which branch pipes 90 lead to the respective lubricantchambers 30 of the individual applicator units.

The lubricant reservoir 19 shown in detail in Figs. 8, 9 and 10comprises a cylindrical drum 91 which is to be filled with suitable oilor other lubricant 92. A weighted piston 93 having a snug sliding fitwithin the cylinder 91 serves to maintain a pressure upon the oil withinsaid cylinder to force the same out of the delivery pipe 94 which leadsfrom the bottom of the cylinder to the distributor pipe 89. It will thusbe seen that a constant supply of lubricant under pressure is alwaysmaintained within the lubricant chamber 30 of the respective units andit may here be noted that the spring 52 of the ball valve 50 is of suchstrength as to prevent said pressure from forcing the oil or otherlubricant past said valve and through the pipe 53 when no trainsarepassing over the track 15. When the lubricant within the reservoir 19has become exhausted, the piston 93 is drawn to its uppermost positionthrough the medium of a crank operated winch 95 which is connected bymeans of a chain 95 to the upper face of the piston 93. The winch 95 iscarried on a collapsible tripod made up of extensible legs 96 which arepivotally secured at their lower ends to the upper edges of the cylinder91 at spaced intervals in any suitable manner. When the tripod is incollapsed position, the winch is lowered so that the hinged cover plate97 may be closed and locked to prevent unauthorized persons fromtampering with the lubricant reservoir.

The weighted piston93 includes the removable plug 98 which is secured inan opening in said piston by means of Wing screws 99 so that said plugmay be readily removed to allow lubricant to be introduced through theopening normally occupied thereby when the piston has been drawn to thetop of the cylinder by the winch mechanism 95. It will be noted that theplug 98 is formed of extra heavy material so as to provide the necessaryweight for maintaining the pressure upon the lubricant within thereservoir cylinder 91. It will thus be seen that all of the applicatorunits 18 will have their lubricant chambers constantly supplied withlubricant from the large reservoir 19 and that my improved lubricatorwill operate efficiently over a long period of time without anyattention whatsoever.

Although a preferred embodiment of the invention has been shown anddescribed, it will be understood that various changes in the details ofconstruction may be made without departing from the spirit of theinvention as defined by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a rail lubricator, a pair of clamping members, a lubricant chestcarried by one of said clamping members, lubricant expellingmeansoperable in said chest, a discharge nozzle carried by the otherclamping member, a conduit leading from said nozzle to the expellingmeans, and interengageable means to align the clamping members.

2. In a rail lubricator, a pair of clamping members, a lubricant chestcarried by one of said clamping members, lubricant expelling meansoperable in said chest, a discharge nozzle carried by the other clampingmember, a conduit leading from said nozzle to the expelling means, andmeans interengageable beneath the rail flange to align the clampingmembers.

3. In a rail lubricator, a pair of clamping members, a lubricant chestcarried by one of said clamping members, lubricant expelling meansoperable in said chest, a discharge nozzle carried by the other clampingmember, a conduit leading from said nozzle to the expelling means, andmeans interengageable beneath the rail flange to align the clampingmembers, said means comprising a pair of spaced lugs on one of theclamping members and an extending portion on the other clamping memberto enter the space between the lugs.

4. In a rail lubricator, a pair of clamping members, a lubricant chestcarried by one of said clamping members, lubricant expelling meansoperable in said chest, a discharge nozzle carried by the other clampingmember, a conduit leading from said nozzle to the expelling means, meansinterengageable beneath the rail flange to align the clamping members,and tie means to tie the clamping members together and bind them fast tothe rail.

5. In a rail lubricator, lubricant expelling means situated on one sideof the rail, a lubricant nozzle on the other side of the rail, a conduitconnecting the nozzle with the expelling means, and means for at oncesupporting the expelling means and nozzle and guarding the conduit, saidmeans comprising a pair of clamping members situated on opposite sidesof the rail and having interengageable means connected beneath the rail,one of said members being cut-away and the other member channeled toprovide a chamber for the occupancy of the conduit.

CURTIS A. McREE.

